It was World Burpee Day recently and even though we're pretty sure this is just a marketing stunt, we're curious: what's your relationship with the dreaded burpee? How many can you do? How many do you want to do, if that number is not zero?

In the days before Google, a tiny, cryptic ad in the back of a magazine had a lot of potential. The seller might not be able to fully describe their product, but if the product wasn't very good, that may be a plus for them. Here are some bait-and-switch ads from the 1950s and beyond, and what you'd get if you sent in for them.

"I CAN GIVE YOU MASSIVE ARMS, BROAD SHOULDERS, AND A GIANT SIZED CHEST IN JUST FOUR WEEKS," the Body-Tone pamphlet promises. It is the "World's Fastest Strength and Muscle Building System". It cost $20 in the late 1950s, but today the program is available for free in the Stark Center Archives. I am ready to begin.

Video: Feeling flabby as you sit at your desk? That's the exact problem this set of exercises was designed to prevent. We've mentioned it before -- the 5BX workout developed for the Royal Canadian Air Force. But today we are happy to bring you these famous exercises in the form of a video (er, film reel).

After far too long indulging in being a certified couch potato, this year I decided to get myself moving. I've had highs, and lows, moments of truimph and hit the dreaded plateau.

Now I'm a legitimate warrior, but not the kind you may be thinking.

Would it surprise you to learn that almost no distance runners complete traditional speed workouts? No, your tempo run, fartlek workout, or interval session on the track doesn't count. We're talking about speed development -- a type of workout that's more common among sprinters.

A high cadence is part of good running form. Most pros take upwards of 180 steps per minute, and that's a pretty good goal to aim for. But you don't have to count your steps the old fashioned way; your iPhone is already keeping track for you.

Barefoot running is like skinny-dipping: Something that's already pretty fun becomes exhilarating and memorable when you're more deeply connected to the environment and your body. You can't help feeling the nuances of the water temperature and noticing your skin when sans swimsuit, and running without shoes forces you to pay attention to the world around you -- and listen to your feet.

If you've never done yoga, it looks intimidating. People are flexible, fit, trendily dressed -- wait, I might be thinking of gym ads rather than actual yoga classes. It turns out you can have a great experience at a yoga class even when you're brand new and we asked yoga instructors how.

Last week I did 31 pull-ups, 31 air squats, 31 push-ups, and 31 reverse lunges on each leg as quickly as I could (along with a 50km-ish bike ride a couple of days after that). The burn I felt in my arms made me seriously question my decisions in life, but I still loved every minute of it.

By now your regular workouts are as second nature as breathing or wearing pants before you leave the house, but now something -- an extended family holiday or an injury perhaps -- has ripped away your routine from you. Not working out for a day already makes you antsy. Not working out for a week or more? Oh, no, panic!

A jogging stroller is an aspirational purchase. You think, I'm watching the kid, I need some exercise, I'll just buy this smooth-rolling baby carriage and presto, an easy, close-to-home workout.

If you lift weights, you've got to fuel your body -- but no matter what you pick, chances are somebody at your gym will tell you your choice of snack is the wrong one. So what is the "right" thing to eat? And does it really matter when?

You don't have to be flexible to do yoga, although it certainly helps for some poses. But there are plenty of moves you can do even if you have the world's tightest hamstrings.

After you've mustered up the willpower to finally check out the gym for the first time, plenty of questions remain: What should you wear? What workout should you do? How does this machine even work? Here's a primer on how to make your first gym experience awesome.

If your best time to exercise is on the weekend, you might wonder if it's OK to slack off for the rest of the week. The answer is yes, but only if you're packing a full week's exercise into those two days. And that comes with its own problems.

Video: If you're inflexible, you might feel like there's no point in trying to stretch. But without stretching, how will you ever get more flexible? A session like the one in today's video can help.

I love long walks and runs, but I don't tend to go on many of them for one reason: I get bored. Walking 8km (or 16) is boring. My Pandora playlist and podcasts can only keep me so entertained, and after 3km I tend to get distracted enough about things I need or want to do at home that I call it quits. At the gym, I came up with a solution for this by watching a TV show or movie on my iPad. Outside, which is my preference, I started walking to destinations.

Video: Sometimes a lunch break workout is the right time for a careful practice of handstanding or one foot balancing. But if you have the space and some willing co-workers, why not crank up "Push It" in the break room and take five minutes for a dance party?